Perspectives

From Healthcare CHRO to CEO: Can It Happen?

Curt Lucas

Managing Partner and Founding Chairman

This is the third in a series of four posts on the priorities of the healthcare chief human resources officer (CHRO).

Chief human resources officers (CHROs) are already valued members of the healthcare C-Suite.  But do CHROs have the knowledge, skill and experience to become chief executive officers (CEOs) of hospitals, health systems, academic medical centers and medical groups?  

Experts say “yes.” Newly expanded CHRO roles and responsibilities have caught the eye of C-Suite executive search consultants who seek fresh talent to fill strategic C-Suite positions, according to Harvard Business Review (HBR)

CHROs “often report directly to the CEO, serve as a key advisor to the CEO, and make frequent presentations to the board,” says HBR. “And when companies search for new CHROs, many now focus on higher-level leadership abilities and strategic implementation skills.” 

How should CHROs who aspire to CEO positions respond? Two strategies come to mind: 

  • Learn about the roles and responsibilities of healthcare CEOs and other emerging C-Suite officers for population health, compliance, accountable care, consumers and engagement and experience.
  • Make the most of new strategic CHRO functions.   

The once and future healthcare CEO  

HCOs retain C-Suite executive search firms to identify CEO candidates who can perform on multiple fronts. CHROs can join forces with CEOs and other senior executives to deliver results on the following goals:      

  • Develop, communicate and fulfill the HCO’s mission, vision, values and strategic direction.
  • Lead, direct and evaluate the work of management, C-Suite and board talent.
  • Oversee the HCO’s clinical, financial, operational and community performance.
  • Track and respond to emerging trends in healthcare, medicine, technology, consumerism, regulation and business via partnerships, alliances, service expansion and penetration of new markets.
  • Represent the HCO’s mission and vision to consumers, government, media, education, business and the healthcare system.
  • Demonstrate the level of leadership and diversity of leadership traits needed to fulfill the HCO’s mission, vision, values and strategic imperatives.

Emerging Roles for CHROs

Human resources professionals once occupied personnel departments where they hired employees, administered compensation and benefits and served executive management. Now, however, human resources professionals—including CHROs—have emerged as strategic partners, workforce champions and engineers of change and innovation, according to David Ulrich’s Human Resources Champions. “HR should be defined not by what it does but what it delivers,” says Ulrich.

Reflect on how you can make the most of these emerging HR roles: 

CHRO as Strategic Partner

How do you, as the CHRO, contribute to the design and implementation of HCO goals and objectives via recruitment, compensation, training and development, retention and career and succession planning? Do you assume accountability for the performance of HR programs and processes? Do you have the emotional, business and leadership intelligence to lead a healthcare C-Suite and board? On a scale of one to 10, how would you rate yourself as a strategic partner to the CEO?   

CHRO as Workforce Advocate 

Do you grasp the needs of the current and emerging healthcare workforce--from employees and clinicians, to managers, executives and board members? Have you become their advocate and champion, building an environment where people will commit and contribute to HCO success and healthcare transformation? Have you implemented strategic approaches to recruitment, compensation, talent management and workforce communications? On a scale of one to ten how would you rate yourself as a workforce advocate?

CHRO as Change Champion

Do you track and evaluate the HCO’s clinical, financial and operational performance? Do you curtail workforce resistance by linking change to the HCO’s strategic needs? Have you created the optimum HCO culture? Do you sponsor change within units, departments, divisions and entities across the care continuum? Do you champion the HCO’s mission, vision, values, strategic imperatives and action agenda? Do you engage C-Suite and board members in HR initiatives and share results and outcomes?    

Securing a CEO position is hardly an easy task. However, CHROs can maximize opportunities for upward mobility if they stay in close contact with C-Suite executive search firms like InveniasPartners. Visibility surges when CHROs position themselves as strategic partners, workforce advocates and change champions via media articles and interviews, committee service and presentations at conferences.        

Curt Lucas is a Managing Partner and founding member of InveniasPartners and is based in Chicago. With more than 25 years of executive search experience, Curt has conducted over 400 senior leadership assignments in healthcare, including engagements for integrated delivery systems, academic medical centers and health sciences centers, investor-owned healthcare companies, physician practice management companies, and managed care organizations. Curt has lead numerous highly visible C-Suite engagements for clients such as Massachusetts General Hospital, BJC Health System, Boston Children’s Hospital, GE Healthcare, Johns Hopkins, Inova Health System, Joint Commission, University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, and St. Joseph Health System. His functional search and assessment experience encompasses all senior executive levels to include operations, finance, clinical leadership, human resources, IT, physician leadership, and board level assignments. 

InveniasPartners, a leading C-Suite healthcare executive and board search, assessment and talent management consulting firm, serves health systems, hospitals, academic medical centers, medical groups and payers through offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, St. Louis and Princeton.

Learn more about InveniasPartners at http://www.inveniaspartners.com